Facebook Channel Management
In addition to the oversight of an internal Bayer Social Media Manager, the following costs approximate annual financial support needed to plan, produce and promote content on Facebook with paid, as well as conducting community engagement activities.
- Content Planning & Production: €160K+
- Paid Support: Each team’s business objectives and channel goals are different, which means the paid spend will be as well. Regardless of spend, it’s important to keep a consistent paid presence on our channels in order to engage with our audiences.
- Community Engagement: €50K+. Note, community engagement needs may be higher when paid campaigns are running. They may be lower based on the size and goals of the channel. View the Community Engagement best practices.
Bayer Brand Narrative Direction
At Bayer, we work to make lives better. And we believe science is the key. Since our foundation, we've built our reputation by delivering on our purpose: "Science for a better life." We've brought essential products to millions around the globe. And we've become a trusted brand that everyone, everywhere can rely on. Together, we're helping people and our planet thrive.
Our journey toward a more dynamic, outward-oriented and human brand continues.
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Bringing to life our focus on advancing health and nutrition
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Putting emphasis on the human aspect and impact of what we do
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Being outward-oriented beyond our own sites and labs
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Confidently express our desire to push the status quo
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Dynamic and agile – helping people and planet thrive
Covers & Profile Photos
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Profile images on all social Bayer Communications channels should be the Bayer logo and any changes should be driven by the Channels & Amplification Team
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Social Cover photos should follow brand guidelines and feature exceptional imagery, highlight diversity, and be globally or regionally appropriate (based on channel).
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Cover photos can be changed up to once per quarter but should not exceed that unless there is a compelling business reason
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Alterations involving logo need approval by the Corporate Brand Management Team. When naming business partners on the channel, use the "|" or "pipe" to separate Bayer from the business partner name. For example: Bayer | Pharmaceuticals
Feed Asset Branding
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Add the Bayer Cross logo to any assets promoting large business announcements (e.g., report releases, company and leadership milestones, etc.) and announcements that will likely be widely “shared.”
About Section
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Ensure your about section is up-to-date and consistent with the current Bayer messaging strategy. Because this may change periodically, refer to the Global Bayer Facebook page for the current messaging.
To build better relationships with your online community, it’s important to create content that they will not only see, but will also engage with. Below are best practices to write successful Facebook posts. While these insights offer a great place to start, it is always a good idea to keep testing approaches and content to continue to learn about your audience and what makes them click.
Copy Length
Research shows posts with around 40–80 characters have the highest engagement.
Frequency
At least 1x–2x promoted organic page posts per week to maintain pulse OR 3x–5x organic page posts per week
Best Posting TImes
For organic posts, the best posting time is dependent on your time zone and location. Furthermore, this can change over time. That’s why it’s generally best to use a 3rd party scheduling software (Sprinklr) to determine the best times on an ongoing basis.
For example, the United States best posting time is generally between 9am–3pm.
Mention Approach
Tag organizational collaborators in a specific post or story to connect brands. Businesses can not mention individuals.
Tone
Tone is lighter, more friendly, and emotional compared to other channels. We have an opportunity to entertain, clearly express our vision and values in a way that connects with people on a more personal level using this channel.
Hashtags
Hashtags are not recommended on Facebook because privacy settings prevent people from seeing many personal account’s use of hashtags.
When Bayer likes a Page, we are showing support and public association with it. The Page will show up in the About section of our profile.
Bayer “Liking” Guidance: Follow pages of companies we have ongoing partnerships with (publications, affiliated Bayer pages, partner NGOs, etc.) so we show collaborative support and easily share content we are tagged in. Ensure you are liking a given page through the company page, not your personal account. Review your “liked pages” every 6 months to ensure your follower list is up-to-date and reflects current partnerships.
How to Like Company Pages
Search for the company page and click the 3 dots under the cover photo. Select “Like as your Page” to ensure you do not like from your personal account.
- The Channels & Amplification team is responsible for maintaining our ‘likes’ and ‘follow’ protocol on the Bayer global page.
- Each country and business partner page owner is responsible for maintaining our ‘likes’ and ‘follow’ protocol of their Facebook page.
What is Community Engagement?
The process of community building with our target audiences across owned and opportunistic, external channels that enhances the experience of our audiences. It also improves societal perceptions and positions Bayer as an industry leader through reputation building.
Bayer Community: A group of people that share an active interest in Bayer and related topics. The Community Engagement Virtual Team builds and fosters communities. They identify, engage in and moderate discussions that relate to our brand and the fields we are operating in to build trust and provide a positive brand experience. They also take an active role in editorial planning and bring in content creation and publishing experience.
Engagement Tone:
- Facebook ads tend to generate a lot of negative engagement. It is best to only engage with valid inquiries and to dispel any misinformation being promoted in comment sections.
- User engagements that are legitimate and non-inflammatory (follow community guidelines) should be responded to as timely as possible. The Community Engagement Virtual Team goal is to respond to all engagements within 24 hours.
- We receive a wide range of engagement topics, but the most common types of engagements on Facebook include product and sales inquiries, product and safety concerns and legacy concerns.
For any questions about community engagement or the virtual team, email engage@bayer.com.